Description

“A strange but utterly convincing beast in this award-winning low-budget film from Germany.” - Hollywood Reporter

Luxury hotel. High-end clientele. Irritable staff. A couple who might fall in love, or they might leave their relationship in its raw state, like the titular steaks. In a new job as a massage therapist at the hotel, Clemens is shy but sensitive and likes to work with his guests’ energies. The ladies he services fall for his skillful hands and make advances on him, which throw Clemens off balance. Lara, who works in the kitchen, tries it the hard way: She shakes Clemens up and brings him out of his shell. She is the knife, he is the spoon. Dirty, bloody, great, and honest.

The first film of what could potentially become a new filmmaking movement called Fogma, with a clear wink to the Dogme 95 manifesto of Lars von Trier and Thomas Vinterberg, which kicked off a renaissance in Danish cinema Love Steaks combines improvisation with a fixed narrative structure as director Jakob Lass introduces two professional actors into an actual hotel environment, with the establishment’s real personnel in supporting roles. This combination of careful planning and provoked spontaneity infuses the entire project with a remarkable energy that suggests anything could happen, while ensuring the entire enterprise never derails. An award winner at Slamdance, Love Steaks was also a surprise best film nominee at the Lolas (the German Oscars). - Jeff M. Giordano